Setting up a home studio

J

Jamie123

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Hi folks,

new to the forums :)

I have been doing photography for 6 years or so, just as a hobby, fun really.

However, since moving home i have one large room, which i have turned into some office space, and wanted to put in some studio kit to take photos of the kids, dogs etc. The room is quite large, but i have no idea what i should be buying, i currently have a canon 60d, flash gun, tripod and couple of different lenses. Ive been trying to do some research but not sure where to start.

I need a cheap setup, i.e large white/black background and the lighting, thats what gets me. :shrug: Can anyone spare some advice on some cheap lighting, but not so cheap which could jepordise my shots? They are only going to be printed for the home anyway.

Thanks for any advice, and sorry for the long post!
 
Jamie123 said:
I need a cheap setup, i.e large white/black background and the lighting, thats what gets me. :shrug: Can anyone spare some advice on some cheap lighting, but not so cheap which could jepordise my shots? !
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If you say how much your budget is, then you may be better advised, but a word of warning is forget the cheap kit ones you see on ebay, i had the misfortune of watching someone trying to use these about a month ago, and they were about as useful as a chocolate kettle :)
 
200 pounds?

This is merely for fun family/pet shots, im not selling portrait photography. But at the same time, id quite like a professional looking finish, as i would like to get the rest of the family to get their photos done, so a nice, but not overly expensive, or complicated set up.

Thanks.
 
If you forget the white background and get a decent one light kit you'll be able to produce some nic stuff.

See the other thread from today, decent results with a white background need at least 3 lights, a lot of space or a hilite, so well out of your budget.
 
Jamie123 said:
I have been looking at this on amazon. Thoughts?

http://www.amazon.co.uk/product-reviews/B005KYK1UU/ref=sr_cr_hist_all?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=1
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That's not a direct link there Jamie, but it's junk. Though admittedly a lot of junk for the money.

For £200 you can get a basic one-light set-up from a decent brand like Lencarta or Elinchrom, probably rather more capable than you think, and build from there. There are a few other names around, but none that I know of that are better value.

Quite a few threads on entry level studio stuff if you search.
 
What flash gun do you have? That could be a starter for 10 using speedlites for OCF. Maybe add another cheap yongnuo flash with a softbox?
 
is it really?

I wouldnt have thought that given the good reviews it has.

Could you point me in the right direction for some kit revolving around a one light setup?
 
For balance - that's a lot of gear, and if you're prepared to work round the limitations it's OK.

The major issues will be though:
The 3 stops power cntrol is a bit of an exaggeration, and even at 3 stops is nothing compared to a better quality unit.

Theres a good set of modifiers, but they're not std fittings, so when you decide you want better softboxes, strip boxes or beauty dishes, you're stuffed.

add in the build quality, unpredictable colour etc and that's why Richard describes them as junk.
 
ok so how about some help setting me up with a one light set up as you suggest and i can build from there?
 
Jamie123 said:
ok so how about some help setting me up with a one light set up as you suggest and i can build from there?
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Short answer: Lencarta Smartflash; white, silver and shoot-through umbrellas; white/silver reflector; trigger; stand; umbrella/stand adapter. Then get going, learn, shoot, read, ask questions, shoot and learn some more. Then when you've found your feet (knowledge is much more important than kit, within reason) you'll know how you want to take things forward.

Longer answers on the numerous threads on this topic. Though if all you want is some basic, decent quality family portraits with a minimum investment (of either money or time) then maybe you could do that with a shoot-through brolly on a stand, using your existing flash gun.
 
Jamie123 said:
is it really?

I wouldnt have thought that given the good reviews it has.
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Reviews by whom?
The people who leave reviews on junk equipment (assuming that they are genuine and not ones created by sellers) tend to be people who have bought it because they don't know any better, i.e. because they have no experience of other lights. There is a very successful Company in the USA that entirely built its business on the back of reviews and forum posts by people who thought that their products were wonderful - but nobody who had used competitive makes ever left a positive review. Also, reviews tend to be left very soon after purchase, before the things stop working or catch fire.

Jamie123 said:
Could you point me in the right direction for some kit revolving around a one light setup?
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1 x 200Ws Flash head, with interchangeable reflector and adequate modelling lamp, fan cooled.
1 x lighting stand
2 x umbrellas, silver and white
1 x 5 in 1 reflector
 
It would appear Lencartas site is down. I`ll order the stuff tomorrow and see how i get on.
 
Im continously getting a timeout message. Ill try in the morning when my heads a bit clearer haha.

Cheers Folks,
J
 
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